Most major recent advances in understanding the history of life on Earth have been through the study of exceptionally well preserved biotas (Fossil-Lagerstatten). These are windows on the history of life on Earth and can provide a fairly complete picture of the evolution of ecosystems through time. This book follows the success of Evolution of Fossil Ecosystems by the same authors which covered Fossil-Lagerstatten around the world. The success of the first book prompted this new book which draws on four localities from the original book and adds another ten, all located in North America. Following an introduction to Fossil-Lagerstatten, each chapter deals with a single fossil locality. Each chapter contains a brief introduction placing the Lagerstatte in an evolutionary context; there then follows a history of study of the locality; the background sedimentology, stratigraphy and palaeoenvironment; a description of the biota; discussion of the palaeoecology, and a comparison with other Lagerstatten of a similar age and/or environment. At the end of the book is an Appendix listing museums in which to see exhibitions of fossils from each locality and suggestions for visiting the sites.

Originally published in 1995, Early Creationist Journals is the ninth volume in the Creationism in Twentieth-Century America series, reissued in 2021. The book is a concise primary source collection containing a selection of journal articles from the early twentieth century outlining discoveries in biology, geology, physiology and archaeology and their relation to Christianity. The aim of the journals was to provide a platform for creationists of the 1920s to voice their theories on new science and how more recent discoveries fit within creationist beliefs, including flood theory. These interesting and unique journals will be of interest to academics working in the field of religion and natural history and provide a unique snapshot into the debates between evolutionists and Christianity during a period of great scientific change.

Originally published in 1995, Creation and Evolution in the Early American Scientific Affiliation is the tenth volume in the series, Creationism in Twentieth Century America, reissued in 2021. The volume comprises of original primary sources from the American Science Affiliation, a group formed following an invitation from the president of the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, in answer to the perceived need for an academic society for American Evangelical Scientists to explicate the relationship between science and faith. The society confronted the debate between creation and evolution head on, leaving a paper trail documenting their thoughts and struggles. This diverse and expansive collection includes 53 selections that appeared during the organisation’s first two decades and focuses on the encounter between science and American evangelicalism in the twentieth century, in particular the debates surrounding the ever-increasing preference for evolutionary theory. The collection will be of especial interest to natural historians, and theologians as well as academics of philosophy, and history.

Out of all the explanations for why a sailor has lost out on a race, an unforeseen change in the wind and weather is by far one of the most frequent. Whether a bad windshift; the non-occurrence of a sea breeze; or being becalmed, the weather has a huge impact on racing. However, it is not hard to turn these problems around. This handy guide has all you need to work out the best way to use the wind to your advantage and boost you up the fleet. The book covers all the essentials for racing, from why gusts form and where to find them, to the formation of the sea breeze (which is never quite as simple as first appears!). Splash-proof and spiral bound, this little companion stands up to frequent use and serves as a great aide-memoire that will fit into your pocket or kit bag, meaning that you can always work out a detailed forecast for your specific racing area, regardless of whether you are on home territory or on completely new waters. Wind Companion also clearly and simply develops a more advanced understanding of the wind, such as which clouds indicate weather fronts and when they may occur. This will also allow you to identify and adapt to changes on the water and even during races, giving you a significant advantage over your competition. Such adaptability will give you the opportunity to beat even knowledgeable locals, as there will always be occasions when the wind does something unexpected - but which can always be explained by the wind-wise sailor. Written by two acclaimed meteorologists, David Houghton and Fiona Campbell, who have advised top sailing teams at all of the big regattas, from Olympics to the America's Cup, you can't go far wrong! This book, based on their best-selling Wind Strategy, is packed full of vital information and clear diagrams to visualise the invisible and is a key resource for anyone looking to advance their sailing knowledge and results.

An octopus expert and celebrated artist offer a deep dive to meet the enchanting inhabitants of the world's marine ecosystems. Have you ever walked along the beach and wondered what kind of creatures can be found beneath the waves? Have you pictured what it would be like to see the ocean not from the shore, but from its depths? These questions drive Janet Voight, an expert on mollusks who has explored the seas in the submersible Alivn that can dive some 14,000 feet below the water's surface. In this book, she partners with artist Peggy Macnamara to invite readers to share her undersea journeys of discovery. With accessible scientific description, Voight introduces the animals that inhabit rocky and sandy shores, explains the fragility of coral reefs, and honors the extraordinary creatures that must search for food in the ocean's depths, where light and heat are rare. These fascinating insights are accompanied by Macnamara's stunning watercolors, illuminating these ecosystems and other scenes from Voight's research. Together, they show connections between life at every depth-and warn of the threats these beguiling places and their eccentric denizens face.

The importance of investigating karstified aquifers lies in their significance as a major source of drinking water. This book describes methods that are basic to all hydrogeological studies, such as hydraulic investigations, hydrochemistry, geophysics, isotope chemistry and modelling, but with the emphasis placed on their application to karst systems. Other techniques are specific to the karst environment, such as the speleological exploration of aquifers and water tracing. The various chapters of this book are written by experts in different methods. Most of the chapters are multi-authored, and the authors include hydrogeologists who are experienced in evaluating a variety of karst environments and who together, provide a comprehensive review of karst methods.

A three volume set consisting of: Water Quality Monitoring: A practical guide to the design and implementation of freshwater quality studies and monitoring programmes Richard Balance & Jamie Bartram 9780419217305 July 1996 234x156mm 400pp Water quality monitoring is an essential tool in the management of water resources and this book comprehensively covers the entire monitoring operation. This important text is the outcome of a collborative programme of activity between UNEP and WHO with inputs from WMO and UNESCO and draws on the international standards of the International Organization of Standardization. Water Pollution Control: A Guide to the Use of Water Quality Management Principles Richard Helmer & Ivanildo Hespanhol 9780419229100 October 1997 234x156mm 520pp This is a handbook for policy makers and environmental managers in water authorities and engineering companies engaged in water quality programmes, especially in developing countries. It is also suitable for use as a textbook or as training material for water quality management courses. It is a companion volume to Water Quality Assessments and Water Quality Monitoring.Water Quality Assessments: A Guide to the Use of Biota, Sediments and Water in Environmental Monitoring Deborah V. Chapman 9780419216001 August 1996 234x156mm 650pp This guidebook, now thorougly updated and revised in its second edition, gives comprehensive advice on the designing and setting up of monitoring programmes for the purpose of providing valid data for water quality assessments in all types of freshwater bodies. It is clearly and concisely written in order to provide the essential information for all agencies and individuals responsible for water quality.

This new book offers an engineer's perspective on the history of water technology and it's impact on the development of civilisation.
A Second Edition and translation into English of the French book "L'Hydraulique dans les Civilisations Anciennes."
Water professionals, engineers, scientists, and students will find this book fascinating and invaluable to their understanding of the fundamental role of water engineering in the development of civilization. The book abounds with descriptions of hydraulic techniques in the civilizations of the classical era and the Middle Ages, including illustrations ands translated descriptions of ancient observers and authors. The work is unique in offering an engineer perspective not only on the history of water technology, but also demonstration of the genesis of ideas and the transmissions of ideas and technology from one age and civilization to the next. The book is specially noteworthy for its efforts to situate hydraulic developments in their historical and intellectual context.

Tackling environmental issues such as global warming, ozone depletion, acid rain, water pollution, and soil contamination requires an understanding of the underlying science and chemistry of these processes in real-world systems and situations. Chemistry for Environmental and Earth Sciences provides a student-friendly introduction to the basic chemistry used for the mitigation, remediation, and elimination of pollutants. Written and organized in a style that is accessible to science as well as non-science majors, this textbook divides its content into four intuitive chapters: Fire, Earth, Water, and Air. The first chapter explains classical concepts in chemistry that occur in nature such as atomic and molecular structures, chemical bonding and reactions, states of matter, phase transitions, and radioactivity. Subsequent chapters focus on the chemistry relating to the geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere-including the chemical aspects of soil, water, and air pollution, respectively. Chemistry for Environmental and Earth Sciences uses worked examples and case studies drawn from current applications along with clear diagrams and concise explanations to illustrate the relevance of chemistry to geosciences. In-text and end-of-chapter questions with complete solutions also help students gain confidence in applying concepts from this book towards solving current, real-world problems.

PART I CHAPTER 1 T E — , , . . . . . . . . . 15 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Geological change — the answers within, and without. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Man on the Moon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Back to the beginning — from the Big Bang to early Earth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Impact — the ubiquitous process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 The oldest rocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Time to cool — birth of the Kaapvaal continent. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Old crust in the Vredefort Dome. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Rifting, oceans, volcanism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Mountains, fire and ice. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 The unique Bushveld magmatic event. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 CHAPTER 2 C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 Extinction or survival — our restless Earth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 Meteorite-impact catastrophes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Normal (background) versus mass extinctions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 A brief look at the impact record in the Solar System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 What are the projectiles capable of causing an impact catastrophe?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 What is an impact crater? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 How can we identify impact structures? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 Shock metamorphism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 CHAPTER 3 T A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 Tswaing meteorite crater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Does Tswaing have a twin? (Kalkkop Crater, Eastern Cape Province) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 South Africa’ s other Giant Impact Morokweng impact structure, — North West Province . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109 Our southern African neighbours . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 Testimony of earliest impact catastrophe — Barberton and the Northern Cape Province . . 113 Traces of catastrophe in the Karoo?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 6 CHAPTER 4 V : T W . . . 117 The Vredefort Structure revealed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 Getting to know the giant: By road through the Vredefort Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 Traversing the outer parts of the Vredefort Dome (Fochville to Parys) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 5 The geology of the Vredefort Dome. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Anthropogenic climate change may lead to intensification of the global hydrological cysle and to increased flooding risk of rivers across Europe. A series of extreme floods in European rivers in the last decades have stimulated discussions about the possible effects of climate variability/change and human interventions in river basins. A synoptic-climatological analysis was carried out to elucidate the observed precipitation change in the Meuse basin, in northwestern Europe. The findings of this research will be valuable to those developing improved flood protection strategies, as well as those engaged in water resource management in river basins similar to the Meuse.

Originally published in 1969, the contributors to this volume examine the natural and social environments of selected areas in Africa and study in detail some particular problems and their solutions. Climate, landforms, soils and vegetation are discussed as fundamental aspects of the physical environment. The next section discusses the social and political environment: demography, agricultural systems and the legacies of colonial administration. Case studies in Malawi, Nigeria, Sudan, Eswatini and Kenya are analysed. The book is aimed at students of African studies, geographers and agriculturalists.

The investigation phase is the most important segment of any geotechnical study. Using the correct methods and properly interpreting the results are critical to a successful investigation. Comprising chapters from the second edition of the revered Geotechnical Engineering Investigation Handbook, Geotechnical Investigation Methods offers clear, concise, and hands-on guidance for choosing and executing a variety of field investigations. This practical guide provides an affordable alternative to larger handbooks and condenses the essential elements of a geotechnical investigation into an easily digestible and readily accessible format. Renowned expert Roy E. Hunt discusses preliminary study to predict geologic conditions, applying information from geologic and topographic maps as well as remotely sensed imagery, proper test boring procedures, the various geophysical methods and when each is appropriate, and a variety of methods for determining materials' engineering properties in the lab and in situ. Hunt also covers field instrumentation for surface movements, subsurface deformations, and in situ pressures and stresses, as well as instrument arrays for typical problems such as structure settlement and fault movements. Eliminate the need to search through narrow volumes or large handbooks with Geotechnical Investigation Methods: A Field Guide for Geotechnical Engineers, a convenient and complete guide to the techniques you need.

Kortz and Smay bring their highly successful lecture tutorial approach (Lecture Tutorials for Introductory Geoscience) to easy-to-implement resource for any introductory earth science course. The brief activities here get students actively involved in the practical application of earth science concepts, while helping them navigate common pitfalls and misconceptions. Activities are built around questions that increase in conceptual difficulty as students progress. Easily incorporated in any class setting and size, the tutorials require no technology and no change in the syllabus, and are compatible with any introductory earth science text.

The depletion of land resources is one of the greatest challenges for mankind in this millennium. Shrinking land resources, weather aberrations, deterioration of land quality, and the globalization and liberalization of market economies have become intertwined to influence the sustainable management of land resources and land use plans. This important volume, Sustainable Management of Land Resources: An Indian Perspective, addresses these challenges. This comprehensive volume, covering important research, much of it gathered with the use of new technology, tools, and applications, is organized into four sections: (add bullets) land resource inventory and characterization geospatial technologies in land resource mapping and management soil nutrient status and management land use planning and livelihood security The volume looks at how scientists translate their knowledge and experience in sustainable land resources and management into implementable policy decisions, with a particular focus on India. Since India is an agrarian economy, the land resources assume a very critical role affecting the livelihood of a vast majority of populace in the country. The information gathered-and the methods by which it is gathered-is applicable globally. This comprehensive publication will be highly useful for the researchers, academicians, extension workers, policymakers, planners, officials of land resources survey, planning and management institutions/agencies/departments, and others.

This book deals with an array of topics in the broad area of biotic stress responses in plants, focusing on "problems and their management" by selecting some of the widely investigated themes. Such as: major insect-pest of cereal crops in India and their management, biotic stresses of major pulse crops and their management strategies, insect pests of oilseed crops and their management, biotic stresses of vegetable crops and their management, insect pests infesting major vegetable crops and their management strategies, fruit crops insect pests and their biointensive integrated pest management techniques, mass trapping of fruit flies using Methyl Eugenol based traps, organic means of combating biotic stresses in plants, nematode problem in pulses and their management, and approaches in pest management of stored grain pests. This book is useful for undergraduate and postgraduate students in Entomology, Plant Pathology, Agronomy, Horticulture, other cognate disciplines of agriculture and allied sciences and other research workers. Note: T& F does not sell or distribute the Hardback in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. This title is co-published with NIPA.

Trace element analysis plays a prominent role in various fields, from mineralogy and geology to semiconductor manufacture and foods. In geochemical exploration, the analysis of trace elements assumes high significance due to the multifaceted role played by them. The analyte is at the detection limit of many instrumental techniques. This makes their determination difficult This book covers a wide spectrum of destructive and non-destructive analytical techniques and recent developments in them used all over the world, including developing countries, for quantitation of trace elements. With revolutionary progress in the last three to four decades in analytical techniques, several ICP-based techniques like ICP-OES and ICP-MS and other nuclear analytical techniques have enabled determination of trace elements at the ppb level. However, these methods require expensive instrumentation and cannot be made available everywhere. The quality of analytical data is dependent on valid reference standards. The book contains detailed sample preparation in varying matrices and an important chapter on statistical treatment of analytical data for the purpose of quality control and quality assurance. Pulling together, the book, containing the work carried out by the author's group in India, will be useful to analysts involved in geochemical explorations.

Flooding accounts for one-third of natural disasters worldwide and for over half the deaths that occur as a result of natural disasters. As the frequency and volume of flooding increases, due to climate change, there is a new urgency amongst researchers and professionals working in flood risk management. River Basin Modelling for Flood Risk Mitigation brings together thirty edited papers by leading experts who gathered for the European Union's Advanced Study Course at the University of Birmingham, UK. In this book, coverage ranges in scope from issues concerning the protection of life to river restoration and wetland management. Eminent experts examine a variety of topics, including climate change, hydroinformatics, hydrometeorology, river flow forecasting systems, and dam-break modeling. They also explore risk and uncertainty issues for flood management, the social and economic impacts of flooding, and developments in flood forecasting and early warning systems. Case studies illustrate the concepts and methods presented throughout the text. With broad yet integrated coverage, River Basin Modelling for Flood Risk Mitigation is an informative and accessible reference tool for professional engineers involved with flood risk management.

Explore Earth's natural treasures, from their primeval origins to traditional uses and modern-day appeal with this illustrated guide to rocks, minerals, crystals, gems and more! Featuring sparkling crystals, vibrant gemstones, and other precious materials often prized for their beauty, such as amber, coral, and fossils, this illustrated guide is sure to captivate every rockhound and budding gemmologist. Learn how to identify more than 450 rock and mineral specimens through beautiful photographs and key characteristics. Discover more about rocks and minerals through folklore and historical artefacts, and find out the fascinating stories behind some of the amazing natural treasures, including the Hope Diamond and the Great Mogul emerald. Plus there is information on polishing and displaying your finds to further equip you with all the knowledge needed to become a rock and mineral collector. Dive deep into this riveting book on rocks and minerals to further discover: - Comprehensive coverage of more than 450 specimens of rocks, minerals, crystals, gems and fossils. - Expert text and high-quality images combine to make this an indispensable reference tool for every rockhound and budding gemmologist. - Detailed reference panels provide key at-a-glance information for identifying specimens. - Feature panels on folklore, historical artefacts, and famous gems tell the fascinating stories of rocks and minerals. - Includes information on collecting and showing rocks and minerals Practical advice on cutting, polishing, and displaying your finds further equips you with all the knowledge needed to delve into the arena of rock and mineral collecting.

Turbulence in Open Channel and River Flows covers turbulence and related fluid mechanics in open-channel flows, addressing both basic mechanisms and their applications. It helps readers understand the organized motion involved in turbulent flow and apply this understanding to the practice of hydraulic engineering, including mass and sediment transport. Chapters cover mathematical expansion procedures and basic fluid mechanics to help readers understand essentially physical phenomena, and present special techniques for measurement and accurate direct observation of open-channel turbulence in laboratory flumes or natural rivers. Topics related to environmental management and turbulence-related disasters are addressed. Includes detailed mathematical expansions and supporting supplements in an appendix Presents the mathematics and fluid mechanics needed to understand turbulence in open channels Includes experimental topics from the author's research, encouraging readers to measure and accurately observe turbulence in laboratories and rivers The book is ideal for graduate students, researchers and engineers in hydraulics and hydromechanics.

Landslide Risk Management comprises the proceedings of the International Conference on Landslide Risk Management, held in Vancouver, Canada, from May 31 to June 3, 2005. The first part of the book contains state-of-the-art and invited lectures, prepared by teams of authors selected for their experience in specific topics assigned to them by the JTC-1 Committee. The second part is a selection of papers submitted to the conference, most of which serve as case-history illustrations of projects on landslide risk management. This reference work presents the current status of landslide risk management as viewed by experts from around the world.

The demand on land to produce food, for urban development such as housing, industry, shopping areas, infrastructure and also for recreation has increased during the history of mankind. This has resulted in such activities as the reclamation of swamps, flood plains, tidal areas and even lakes by impoldering. Model simulations can be use to gain insight into the system behaviour of different land use and soil composition under temperate humid and humid tropic conditions, The existing package OPOL, based on a non steady model, was further developed to the version OPOL5 for the simulation of hydrological conditions and optimization of the main components of water management systems in polder areas in the temperate humid and humid tropical zone. This model reveals a system's behaviour as well as the effects of variation in the main components of the systems to the overall costs. For example, the designs of pumped drainage systems in polder areas can be optimized by varying the main components until the annual equivalent costs are minimum. A GIS tool has been used to complement OPOL5 for the simulation of the real situation in an area with respect to land use, damage, topography, and soil type. The model package has been applied to two case studies: one in the temperate humid zone, namely the Netherlands and to Thailand in the humid tropical zone.

What would it be like to experience the ancient landscapes of the past as we experience the reality of nature today? To actually visit the Jurassic or Cambrian worlds, to wander among their spectacular flora and fauna, to witness their continental shifts? In Otherlands, the multi-talented palaeontologist Thomas Halliday gives us a breath-taking up close encounter with worlds that are normally unimaginably distant. Journeying backwards in time from the most recent Ice Age to the dawn of complex life itself, and across all seven continents, Halliday immerses us in sixteen lost ecosystems, each one rendered with a novelist's eye for detail and drama. Every description - whether the colour of a beetle's shell, the shambling rhythm of pterosaurs in flight or the lingering smell of sulphur in the air - is grounded in fact. We visit the birthplace of humanity on the shores of the great lake Lonyumun, in Pliocene-era Kenya; in the Miocene, we hear the crashing of the highest waterfall the world has ever known as it fills the evaporated Mediterranean Sea; we encounter forests of giant fungus nine metres tall in Devonian-era Scotland; and we gaze at the light of a full and enormous moon in the Ediacaran sky, when life hasn't yet reached land. To read Otherlands is to time travel, to see the last 550 million years not as an endless expanse of unfathomable time, but as a series of worlds, simultaneously fantastical and familiar.

How did the dog become man's best friend? A celebrated anthropologist unearths the mysterious origins of the unique partnership that rewrote the history of both species. Dogs and humans have been inseparable for more than 40,000 years. The relationship has proved to be a pivotal development in our evolutionary history. The same is also true for our canine friends; our connection with them has had much to do with their essential nature and survival. How and why did humans and dogs find their futures together, and how have these close companions (literally) shaped each other? Award-winning anthropologist Pat Shipman finds answers in prehistory and the present day. In Our Oldest Companions, Shipman untangles the genetic and archaeological evidence of the first dogs. She follows the trail of the wolf-dog, neither prehistoric wolf nor modern dog, whose bones offer tantalizing clues about the earliest stages of domestication. She considers the enigma of the dingo, not quite domesticated yet not entirely wild, who has lived intimately with humans for thousands of years while actively resisting control or training. Shipman tells how scientists are shedding new light on the origins of the unique relationship between our two species, revealing how deep bonds formed between humans and canines as our guardians, playmates, shepherds, and hunters. Along the journey together, dogs have changed physically, behaviorally, and emotionally, as humans too have been transformed. Dogs' labor dramatically expanded the range of human capability, altering our diets and habitats and contributing to our very survival. Shipman proves that we cannot understand our own history as a species without recognizing the central role that dogs have played in it.

This book provides a comprehensive analysis of the benefits and challenges of intensifying groundwater irrigation in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) for improving smallholder agrarian livelihoods. Only about 3% of the groundwater resources of Sub-Saharan Africa are used for irrigated agriculture despite the subcontinent’s relative abundance of groundwater. The majority of the region’s smallholders are highly dependent on seasonal dryland cropping, making them extremely vulnerable to uncertain weather patterns and droughts. Improved irrigation capabilities through sustainable groundwater development could unleash smallholder farming and make it a major driver of economic growth, poverty reduction, climate resilience, and improved food security. So, why is groundwater so underused? Tapping into groundwater requires a major shift in farming practices and it has its own challenges and requirements – smallholder access to land and finance for irrigation infrastructure and equipment, gendered and equitable adoption options. This whole list is framed in terms of what the smallholder farmers need. Hence, this should also be put in this context, supply chains, energy access, resource availability, and institutional support. The chapters in this book present a picture that is not only heterogeneous across the region, but also hold some common denominators. They serve to enrich the discourse and help better understand the barriers along the pathways toward the sustainable and transformative adoption of groundwater irrigation. The scientific information provided herein would be of interest to researchers, practitioners, decision makers and planners with interest in the region. This book was originally published as a Special Issue of Water International journal.